Keeping your house clean can seriously stink! Literally! I don’t know how many times I have had to open windows to air out the house from all of the nasty chemicals making me feel dizzy. That’s why I started doing research on ways to make my own household cleaners that are more natural, chemical free and way CHEAPER to make!

In the past I was totally a name brand Windex girl. Now I completely changed and have discovered an awesome DIY Window Cleaner recipe that works fantastic and is chemical free.

Ingredients

1/4 cup rubbing alcohol

1/4 cup white vinegar

1 TBSP cornstarch

2 cup warm water

10-15 drops of essential oil (to help mask the smell of the vinegar and rubbing alcohol)

Mix all ingredients together well. Pour into an empty spray bottle and begin cleaning. You will be pleasantly surprised by how awesome this “chemical free” window cleaner works!

There are a few meals that just taste like “home” to me. Mashed potatoes are one of those meals. One of my favorite “homey” recipes is this Cheesy Garlic Mashed Potatoes. Although it’s very simple to make, it tastes like fine dining garlic mashed potatoes. Serve with a juicy steak or some fried chicken and enjoy!

Here is another one of my favorite recipes – Tomato Vegetable & Beef Stew. It’s perfect on a cold Fall or Winter day, it takes only a few minutes of prep work and always tastes perfect! Honestly you can’t mess this recipe up….it’s that simple. Oh and did I mention the best part – it’s a crockpot soup which means you can put it together in the morning (in about 5-10 minutes) and it will be ready to eat when you get home!

Ingredients

1 lb Beef Stew Meat

2 Large Russet Potatoes, cubed 1/4 inch thick

1 Cup Carrots, chopped

1 Cup Frozen Corn

1 Cup Celery, chopped

3 Cloves Garlic, finely chopped

1 Can Chicken Broth

1 Can Italian Tomatoes

1 tsp Tabasco Sauce

2 tsp Worcestershire Sauce

Salt and Pepper

Sour Cream (optional)

Directions

In a crockpot add all ingredients, except for corn all together. Let cook on high for 6-8 hours or on low for 10-12 hours. (I use a Ninja cooking system and can have my stew done in 4-6 hours on high).

The stew is done when the meat is melt in your mouth tender. When the stew is done cooking taste and add more seasonings (salt, pepper, garlic powder, Tabasco or Worcestershire) as needed. Add corn and let cook for 10-15 minutes.

My kids absolutely LOVE poptarts but I am really not a big fan of all the additives and sugar they contain. Plus they seem so expensive for something so simple. Well check out this awesome recipe for Homemade Raspberry Poptarts. They are so easy to make your kids can help you. Plus you can swap out the ingredients to make whatever flavor you want – raspberry, strawberry, smore’s, Nutella, the options are limitless!

Get ready to be BLOWN AWAY with this undeniably amazing Ultimate Bacon & Cheese Chip Dip!!! Once you try this dip you will be hooked. Just make sure to have an entire bag of chips for yourself because you aren’t going to want to share.

Ingredients

8 oz cream cheese

1 1/2 cups sour cream

1/2 cup bacon, chopped

1/4 cup green onion, chopped

1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp dried parsley

Pepper to taste

Chips

Directions

Allow cream cheese to sit out for about 20 minutes to soften. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Top with bacon, green onions and cheese. Serve with your choice of chips and try to have some self control. If you are not careful you may eat all of the dip before you get a chance to serve it to your guests!

Get cozy and cuddle up with a warm cup of coffee, a blanket and one of these scrumptious Nutella Croissants. These easy to make croissants come together in less than 15 minutes and will simply melt in your mouth.

Ingredients

Pillsbury Crescent Rolls

1/2 cup Nutella

1/4 cup powdered sugar

1 TBSP butter, melted

Directions

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

Open up the packages of Pillsbury Crescent Rolls. Unroll and layout flat on counter. Cut into 8 triangular pieces (lines are already perforated).

Scoop about 1 TBSP of Nutella on each triangular piece. Roll up crescent triangle piece with nutella starting from the largest side.

They say breakfast is the most important meal of the day! That’s why I LOVE this awesome Skillet Sweet Potato Hash – it’s delicious, nutritious, gluten free, paleo friendly, Avocare friendly and well just plain amazing! Whether you are making it for breakfast, lunch or dinner it’s a meal everyone can enjoy!

Dice sweet potatoes into 1/4″ pieces. Evenly spread them out onto a large baking sheet, lightly drizzle with olive oil and sugar. Pre-Heat oven to 400 degrees and bake for 8 minutes (or until tender). Make sure to not over cook sweet potatoes, they need to be slightly al dente.

In a large skillet, saute onions until nearly transparent. Add Italian sausage and cook until fully browned.

We shared this earlier in the month, but thought we should share it again since the big game is this weekend! No matter who is playing it is an opportunity to get together with friends and family and eat some good food and have some fun! You’ll want to check out these great Game Day recipes!!!!

Money Management

About Me

Tracie is a stay at home mom to three young children; ages 6, 7 and 10 in Raymore, Missouri. In November 2007, she and her husband decided to eliminate their debt and made many changes in their lifestyle to do just that.

She and her husband eradicated over $37,000 in debt in 27 months, through both budgeting and learning how to live a frugal life. She now shares her knowledge in order to help you stretch your hard-earned dollars so you can live the life you want.